The Sunday Junkie: March 20 edition

It should come as no surprise that new UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones was the primary focus of this week’s edition of “The Sunday Junkie.”

Jones’ stellar third-round stoppage of Mauricio “Shogun” Rua earned him the title of youngest-ever UFC champion, but it seems nearly everyone believes that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

While most entries tried their best to describe the greatness that lies ahead for Jones, our winner, Ryan Stout, elected to focus on what the new champ’s run could mean for fellow title-holders Anderson Silva and Georges St-Pierre.

For his winning entry, Ryan wins a free one-year subscription to “Fighters Only” magazine, the world’s leading MMA and lifestyle magazine. He’ll also be invited onto MMAjunkie.com Radio to discuss his topic with the show’s hosts.

Want to submit to next week’s edition of The Sunday Junkie? Scroll to the bottom of the page for instructions.

Also, as a reminder, please be sure to include your hometown and stick within the 150-word limit. Many quality submissions this week didn’t meet those minimum guidelines and couldn’t be considered for publication.

(Pictured: Jon Jones)

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JONES’ SCINTILLATING VICTORY MAKES SILVA VS. ST-PIERRE IRRELEVANT

I will readily admit I thought Jon Jones got rushed into the limelight a little too soon, but he passed his biggest test with flying colors. Maybe we were all lying to ourselves by thinking Mauricio “Shogun” Rua stood a chance at UFC 128. Regardless, Jones put an exclamation mark on the fact that he is now the top light heavyweight in the world. And now, who is the next credible challenger? Technically, it’s Rashad Evans, but does anyone honestly believe he has a chance after what just transpired? Next we have Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, whose most recent win was a debatable split-decision over Lyoto Machida. Forrest Griffin hasn’t had a conclusive win since choking out Rua. We could go in circles, but based on the current light-heavyweight landscape, Jones vs. Anderson Silva is the perfect matchup. And if we’re honest with ourselves, it’s more intriguing than Silva vs. Georges St-Pierre.

Ryan Stout
Amarillo, Texas

JON JONES VS. ANDERSON SILVA COULD BE THE UFC’S KEY TO REGULATION IN NEW YORK

The most talked about potential matchup in recent history is Georges St-Pierre vs. Anderson Silva, but the UFC could capitalize on a golden opportunity right now by abandoning that idea and instead promoting a more evenly matched contest in Jon Jones against “The Spider.” Not only would this make more sense based on skillset and size, but this could be the best opportunity the UFC will see to get MMA sanctioned in New York. Jones has shown he’s an intelligent, grounded individual, and pitting him against arguably the most talented champion of our time would generate a plethora of interest in his home state. More importantly, it would make New York’s lawmakers aware of the massive potential revenue from the most-anticipated UFC fight ever going elsewhere if they don’t act. If the UFC sees the small window before them, they will abandon current plans and seize the opportunity before them.

“dogbyday”
Fort Collins, Colo.

JON JONES QUICKLY BECOMING THE FACE OF MMA

The future is now for UFC champion Jon Jones, and after beating Mauricio “Shogun” Rua for the light heavyweight title, he has proven that the hype is justified. With a freakish athletic ability that has never been seen in MMA – combined with his dominating wrestling – Jones not only has become UFC champion but also the face of MMA. His talent inside the cage speaks for itself. However, its Jones’ personality that makes him the perfect fighter to lead the expanding UFC. He is well-spoken in his interviews and is always positive, saying the right things while promoting the sport. Jones won’t get on SportsCenter talking about how his next fight has the potential to be boring like Quinton “Rampage” Jackson did before the Lyoto Machida fight. As long as he stays healthy and humble, I see Jones embracing and holding on to this role for a long time.

Kyle “mmacracky” Walsky
Jacksonville, Fla.

JON JONES CONFIDENT, NOT COCKY

At Saturday’s UFC 128 event, Jon Jones walked through yet another opponent – and remained humble in doing so. There was debate that some of what Jones had said in the week prior to the fight was with great cockiness. However, this was never the case. If Jones hadn’t said he had the skillset to win, he would of basically been saying, “I’m not sure I can beat this guy.” Let’s be honest – that’s not the attitude of the new champion. Jones even gives praise to God for his skillset. Jones shows confidence in saying he knows you’re coming for him, but he’s waiting for you. There is no simple way to play this off as a Rashad Evans-like attitude.

Ryan “beatdown” Brown Sr.
Portland, Ore.

JON JONES EXHIBITS THE REAL ART IN MIXED MARTIAL ARTS

Jon “Bones” Jones secured a convincing and exciting win at Saturday night’s 128 event by defeating a legend and potentially legitimizing the light heavyweight division. The light heavyweight title has been flip-flopping among ex-PRIDE champs and “The Ultimate Fighter” standouts for more than two years. Jones is clearly an artist of the sport – entertaining and dominant on the ground and feet. The Zuffa, LLC acquisition of Strikeforce earlier this week raised concerns of corporate domination. But Jones’ victory puts the belt on the waist of a fighter that shows the sportsmanship and dedication of the new breed. As much as he is hyped, he now reigns a division that has been riding on hype for far too long. At UFC 128, talent and creativity dominated over gameplans, signature moves and branding.

Mike Start
Austin, Texas

JON JONES IS THE NEW FEDOR EMELIANENKO

The old guard of MMA died at UFC 128 – not with a bang, but with a whimper. Jon “Bones” Jones fulfilled his own prophecies and smashed former PRIDE legend Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. With this victory, Jones has already become an icon in the sport and an unstoppable force not unlike a once-iconic, previously-unstoppable force named Fedor Emelianenko. Parallels can clearly be seen between the two fighters: Jones has dispatched all of his opponents (including a highly respected champion) with ease, is a threat to his opponents standing or on the ground, is revered for his unmatched skills, and even has a controversial loss on his record involving elbows. The star fighters of old have been fading. With the fall of the last legend in “Shogun,” the torch has been passed. There is a new breed of MMA fighters and “Bones” Jones is their Fedor.

Matt Saccaro
New York

JON JONES, JOSE ALDO POISED TO DOMINATE FOR YEARS TO COME

With his complete domination of Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Jon Jones has to be considered one of the most feared fighters at not only 205 pounds but at any weightclass. The only person I see comparable that has just totally dominated every opponent is Jose Aldo. If Aldo is on top of his game after his next fight, it’s safe to say that these two faces will be carrying their respective divisions for a long time to come. Two young, talented and humble men who are still learning everyday in the gym. Who’s got the better chance of being better in the long run? Only time will tell.

Eric “icethonk”
Des Moines, Iowa

WELCOME TO THE JON JONES ERA

Going into UFC 128, there waere a lot of questions being asked about Jon Jones. We all wondered how he would hold up against an elite striker like Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. Jones silenced all of his critics. I don’t think many people expected Jones to dominate Rua like he did. Everyone thought that the difference in the fight would be Rua’s experience, but that didn’t help him at all. Jones outstruck Rua and was just too much for him on the ground. After this fight, I think it’s safe to say that Jones has what it takes to hold the belt for a long time.

Vincent Siino
Rockaway, N.J.

TIME WON’T WAIT, NOR WILL JONES

In this sport’s short history, it’s managed to produce a long list of legends. Sadly, to make room for new ones, there must be a changing of the guard, and in MMA it’s usually not pretty. At UFC 128 nature took its course. But this was no ordinary changing of the guard – a true alpha male has pushed ahead of the pack to stake his claim. As a longtime fan of the sport, it’s hard to watch the great ones fall, but it’s even harder to wrap my head around someone like Jon Jones. From running through a division to stopping crime hours before stopping a legend, he’s sure to cure cancer before his first title defense. Joking aside, it’s amazing to think how one can defy time. Randy Couture amazes us by holding off time, whereas Jones seems to effortlessly exist in his own time zone.

“Dan from Vegas”
Las Vegas, Nev.

JON JONES IS AMAZING, BUT ANY ERA TALK IS ENTIRELY PREMATURE

Jon Jones’ manhandling of his previous competition, coupled with his UFC 128 destruction of a strong former champion in Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, are truly impressive feats. But as a community, we have a tendency – perhaps encouraged by enthusiastic commentators – to jump on the latest big thing. Rashad Evans had not yet regained his marbles when it was declared the “Machida Era.” Jones is a specimen, and I look forward to seeing how he handles the current slate of challenges from Evans (easily), “Rampage” Jackson (interesting), Lyoto Machida (can you counterstrike that?), Forrest Griffin (even more interesting), etc. And then, maybe in two years time, we can start to tease the “e-word.” Oh, and please let the man enjoy his belt before the “move up to heavyweight” discussion starts. Let’s enjoy the ride that this talent-rich unorthodox fighter brings to the cage.

Glenn “The Anvil” Cooper
Toronto, Ontario, Canada

GREG JACKSON REMAINS THE BEST COACH IN THE UFC

It’s time to lay to rest the notion that Greg Jackson only trains
“boring fighters.” With another exciting win for Jon “Bones” Jones, it’s
time to put aside this silly train of thought. Jackson builds gameplans
around fighters’ strengths and their opponents’ weaknesses. According
to most critics, Jones should only have used his wrestling to grind out
the victory over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. But Jones is an electric fighter
whose unpredictability is an asset. Jackson implied a gameplan that
used Jones’ talents to defeat Rua. Jackson now trains at his New Mexico
gym two of the UFC’s seven champions. Georges St-Pierre has exciting
fights every time he’s in the octagon. Jones now has all the potential
and strong coaching to become a legend within the UFC. I’m sure pundits
will find ways to turn this around but Jackson deserves high praise.
Like Vince Lombardi or Joe Torre, Greg Jackson took raw talent and made
them into champions.

Brad Spencer
Pickering, Ontario, Canada

WELCOME TO THE JACKSON ERA

After Lyoto Machida’s spectacular knockout over then-205-pound champ Rashad Evans at UFC 98, commentator Joe Rogan announced the arrival of “the Machida Era.” At UFC 128, Jon Jones dismantled Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, the man who abruptly ended the “Machida Era.” As the camera focused on the 23-year old Jones, Rogan declared, “That, ladies and gentlemen, is the future (of MMA). He is the present, and he is the future.” As soon as the Jones-Rua matchup was announced, it was widely predicted that Jones would take the belt and go on to dominate his division in a fashion similar to the reign of his Greg Jackson teammate, Georges St. Pierre. These predictions soared over the heads of not only “Shogun,” once universally considered the sport’s finest light heavyweight, but Evans, who left Team Jackson last night to focus on challenging Jones. The movement had already been underway, but now it’s official: Welcome to the “Jackson Era.”

Dominic Velando
Texas

UFC CHANNEL MAKES SENSE

This statement, made by UFC president Dana White, echoes what most fans are feeling after the UFC announced their latest business acquisition: rival MMA promotion Strikeforce. With the popularity of MMA surging and gaining ground toward proving its legitimacy as a sport, it is every fan’s dream to see the sport have it’s own channel. Adding Strikeforce to the list of promotions whose footage the UFC can air, there is no doubt that the UFC would have the content required to make having a channel feasible. This channel would help to make MMA more accessible by reaching a larger audience, while also working to promote fight cards which, will help the UFC boost pay-per-view sales. In addition, a UFC channel would assist the promotion in further establishing MMA as much more than just entertainment – but a mainstream sport.

Robert Brown
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

UFC’S BIG WINS SECURE ENVIABLE MARKET POSITION

The Ultimate Fighting Championship is firing on all cylinders. Not only
have they successfully eliminated all of their competition, they
currently distribute their brand worldwide on multiple mediums: the
Internet (via Facebook), cable TV (Spike TV and Versus) and
pay-per-view. UFC 128’s launch of Jon Jones and the rebirth of Urijah
Faber ushered in a new breed of UFC fighter for an ever-expanding market
– one that will soon include the Big Apple. Once the UFC wins big again
– this time at Madison Square Garden – the sky will truly be the limit
for the UFC. With an NFL strike looming, there will be hungry fans on
the lookout for something new and violent. It’s yet another reason the
UFC has never been in a stronger place than it is right now.

“Ian in L.A.”
Los Angeles, Calif.

WOMEN’S MMA ISN’T ANYTHING TO BE AFRAID OF

I see a lot of posters on MMAjunkie.com talking about how they hate women’s MMA – that they don’t like to see women fight or that violence shouldn’t be directed toward women. These ladies aren’t being beat up by an abusive husband; they’re competing in a sport. They know what they’re getting into. Lots of women start in a martial art as a way to stay in shape, but what happens when they fall in love with the sport and want to make a career out of it? Just like men, they should be allowed to take their skills and try to make a living at it and become the best at it. A lot of the detractors come off as insecure in seeing a woman who could mop the floor with them rather than a Swiffer, and that’s sad.

Zac “ImBigZ” Bolin
Mitchell, S.D.

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